Help!!!giving birth!!!!

Question

i just found out that i am pregnant so naturally my head has been all over the place thinking about things but one thing is getting me is the labour part i cant deal with pain like pain is a fear for me as well as needles so i don't want the epidural after seeing how they do it no way but ive been reading on-line peoples stories of childbirth and how bloody painful it is and now i am totally freaked out is it REALLY THAT BAD with out the epidural???

Answer 1

I'm sorry to say but it is unlike any pain you can ever imagine. It is seriously painful to give birth. Take the drugs if they're offered afer weighing up all your options. Check with your local hospital before giving birth and see if you can do a birthing class that teaches you how to relax during labour. If you really are that scared about labour, you may go into shock like I did. I wish I had of learnt how to breath properly and get control of my emotions, it would have been a much better labour if I had done that!  Don't worry though, it's impossible to know how your labour is going to be. You may be lucky and handle the pain very well which a lot of women do. It may only be 3 or 4 hours or it may be 20 hours, it's impossible to say so best to prepare yourself for every situation. Best of luck and remember, it is SO SO SO WORTH JUST 1 DAY OF PAIN!!

Answer 2

no you shouldnt take it cause it will catch up to you in the long run..i had both of my pregnancys natural no medicine and it aint that bad...dont get the epidural

Answer 3

Can i just say to all the people who are saying "if its really that bad why do ppl do it more than once" .. well i said that b4 i had my baby i thought "oh surely its not that bad". WELL.. for me it WAS that bad that im not having any more kids. NO more for me, 1 terrible labor of 24 hours was long and bad enough. so i guess its all a luck of the draw thing. Some ppl have good labors, some bearable, some terrible. mine was terrible and im never going back for more.  

Answer 4

I am scared of needles, not pain.  You have to just go in with an open mind and remember that pain managment is there if you need it.  I had my daughter without an epidural...but my intense labor (after my water broke) was not very long.  I didn't think it was that painful, just exhausting. And what suprised me, pushing actually relieved the contraction pain. You will be amazed at what you are capable of when its time for that little person enter this world.

Do what feel right for you.  Go in with no set plans and get a feel for what happening.  Just because I did it without doesn't mean thats what's right for you.

Answer 5

You will be fine....  I'm not saying it doesn't hurt but if it was that bad nobody would do it a 2nd, 3rd, 4th....time.

Answer 6

No, it's really not.

I'm a total wimp, and I've got four. Only one epidural, thanks to pitocin.

Don't bother with the epidural, it's just not that bad- you recover in about a minute!

look into hypnotheapy or meditation for your anxiety, and a pool for pain control. They work.

Answer 7

yep and so much worse.........get the epidural

Answer 8

every womans experience is different. my labor was great, i couldnt have asked for better, i didnt have an epidural or gas and air, because it made me sick. i had a pethadine injection, which made me slep for 2 hours. in total i was in labor for 3 hours, sleeping for 2. i woke up and within 5 mins of pushing, my son was born.

but many women have long painful labors, maybe i was lucky!!

i did no exercise when i was pregnant, and was constantly told that id have a hard labor.

Answer 9

It is bad with or without the epidural.  Don't kid yourself you are in for one massive dose of pain.  However it will all be worth it as soon as you have your baby in your arms.  If it wasn't then why would people go back for more....

Answer 10

Please take my advice...Get the Epidural!!!! No amount of pain from a needle can even begin to touch labor pain. It is truly overwhelming. I had my son natural and will never make that mistake again. I had horrible back labor. The rest wasn't that bad, I could manage...but my back felt like someone was slowly pulling my spine out of me. Use the Epidural...do not go into this thinking it won't be that bad. If you are freaked out by pain to begin with nautural birth is NOT for you!  

Answer 11

The actual giving birth part is such a small part of pregnancy and motherhood. If it is worrying you that much talk to your doctor about it so you can have a birth plan. Your body is designed to give birth and millions of women do it without pain relief. Think about women in third world countries and what they go through.

Obviously everyone's experience is different. There are other pain relief options that don't involve needles but honestly, a needle is the least of your concern at that moment.  

Answer 12

I cant speak from experience on  the epidural because i didn'tot have it when i had my 2 year old. I had the gas which makes u feel like you are drunk. The epidural is suppose to numb u from the waist down but unfortunately you cant move for at least 24 hours so u have to go to the bath room in a pan(ewww). I am a huge pain freak but i wouldnt take back wot i did in a second because i actually felt some pain and got to experience child birth. some hospitals these days prefer you not to have pain relief o i would keep that in mind and talk to your doctor and hospital about  these issues.

Answer 13

i have only had 1 child and i did NOT have the epidural and it was not bad at all. i got pain meds through my IV and they worked. i too am afraid of needles. so when they offer you pain medicine, tell them you want the kind through your iv  think it is called nubain.  

Answer 14

In the moment it is that bad. But then all is forgotten. I've had an epidural birth and one without and both have the same outcome. I was left with a happy healthy baby. It's all relative.  

Answer 15

You won't see the epidural needle, and getting it doesnt hurt.  Unfortnatley, most hospitals require that you wait until you are 4cm dilated before administering it, so you will be in pain up till then, but you can have gas and air for that.  There is no way to do the whole experience completely painlessly, but in all honesty, i'd describe the pain as strong but strange, kind of elating really.  Knowing that your labour is starting is such a relieving wonderful feeling that the pain becomes a part of that good feeling.  Very hard to explain.  In a weird way i'm looking forward to feeling it again.

Answer 16

  hi just want to let you know everyone is different with the first baby no pain with each contraction it felt like someone was poring cold water down my & tapping ever so litely. With the second nature @ a birthing center wonderful setting the whole family was there labor pains were in my back but I had a birthing coach that would message the site all the way threw the contraction and bye bye pain.Third baby long labor because he kept turning side to side my doctor turn him preforming a external version(in laymen terms,pushed on my stomach to turn the baby head down) but very little pain.Stay active eat as normal as possable no process food stay happy &good luck

Answer 17

My wife said that they must not have administered her epidural correctly, or given it enough time to work. She said that all of her deliveries (three) non-epidural and (one) epidural felt the same to her.  In fact after her epidural was administered the nurse broke her water to induce labor, which my wife said was actually more painful.

Our neighbor however had two children without an epidural and her last with an epidural and she swears by them.

How bad is the pain? I'd imagine a question like this will get a 1000 different answers from 1000 different people. I can only share with you the stories from my wife and our neighbor because (obviously) I'm male. However my advice would be to concentrate on the upcomming "pregnancy experience" more than the birth.  Labor and delivery is just a "quick" part of pregnancy which happens to also signify it's end. Both my wife and I missed "the babys" being inside her once they were born.  It is truly a wonderful experience for both the mother and the father.

Just remember that once labor starts, the delivery is the only thing to relieve the pain. Relief comes rather quickly for most women.  Some that I have spoken to (like my mother for example) say it is instantaneous.

Congratulations new "Mom"!

Answer 18

When i found out i was pregnant the first time, instantly i was thinking about the birth.. really everyone says it but its true.. u 4get bout the pain when u r holding ur baby.. im a proud mummy of 2 and had both naturally both drug free(although i did want them!!!).. But yes child birth is painful.. but think about it so would the massive needle u get for an epidural.. You'll be okay theres no backing out now anyway.. the delivery will come whether u like it or not(sorry)

Goodluck Babe

Answer 19

I regret getting an epidural.  I was 5 cm when I arrived at the hospital.  I was able to handle it just fine.  The epidural slowed my progress way down.  The nurse made me push the second I was fully dialated and I could not push very well since I was numb.  I pushed for 2 1/2 hours and made little progress.  They finally decided to pull my baby out with the vaccuum.  They gave me an episotomy before they pulled her out, but I ended up with a 4th degree tear (tearing clear down thru my bumhole).  The epidural actually got torn out during all the pushing without me knowing.  By the time I was delivered I felt quite a bit.  It took the doctor an hour to stitch me up and I felt most of it.

Answer 20

It's a long way off until you give birth, so you can relax for a bit about the pain side of things. Be honest about your fears though to your care giver (midwife, Dr, etc) as then they will be ready to help you deal with your child birth experience in a positive way.

It is completely natural to be fearful of giving birth, as it is the unknown, until you get there.

My sister was like you, terrified of needles & pain, but she now has 2 beautiful children & the first one was quite traumatic coming into the world. But she went on and did it again, so it wasn't that bad!! Every blood test she had to have she just kept thinking I'm doing this for you baby and it helped her be brave.

Lots and lots of people will tell you horrendous stories about their pregnancy/birth/labour everything and what I do when they are telling me something particularly horrific, (as I'm 36 weeks with my 2nd baby) is remember 'Ah yes but that was you and it'll probably be completely different for me' and say to them "And how exactly is that going to help me?" and then they usually shut up and realise how stupid and tactless they have been!

Answer 21

I take it this is your first child, it is natural to be fearful of all the things you have to go through to have your baby and yes it is pain full in more ways than one, but it will be worth it in the end. I suggest you just concentrate on the end task... having a beautiful, healthy baby! Every time you have to have a blood test or a check up, remember you are doing this for your baby. As for the epidural, that is a long way of and you may change your mind and not have one, put it aside for now and concentrate on you and your unborn child.

On a personal note: I too have just found out I am pregnant! I'm 8 weeks tomorrow. My second child, but get this my first child is 15 yrs old! Yes a big gap! A lot of things have changed since I had him and I just had my first lot of blood work done yesterday! And I hate needles with a passion! I am not thinking about the birth (just yet) just getting through day by day and doing what I'm told by my anti natal clinic.

Do you have any support? A partner? Family? Friends? I hope so, you are going to need them. Talk to any woman you know who have had babies and see what they say.

Trust me, when you are holding your baby for the first time, all the needles, pain and morning sickness you went through for that nine months will be totally worth it!

I wish the best of luck for you, your baby and your family.

BB

Answer 22

I wanted a natural child birth and I did really well at first. But, after 12 hours of hard labor, I was shaking because the contractions hurt so much. I could barely breathe and my husband couldn't take watching me hurt like that any more. He finally convinced me to get the epidural and I am very glad I did because I still had 7 more hours of labor before the baby came out. If you're interested in learning about natural child birth, look into the Bradley method. That's what we wanted to use and it makes a lot of sense. My husband just wasn't able to be there long enough (he made it back three days before we had the baby) so we couldn't get the technique down but you've got plenty of time. You should have a pain relief picked out just in case you need it. You don't want to hear a list of pros and cons when you're hurting like that. Good luck!

Answer 23

i hear ya there i am scared out of my mind of needles i cant see them but trust me u will want the epidural and the needle isnt that bad because u cant see it u will be fine i thought i wasnt going to be able to do it but im sooo happy i did